It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

****SPOILERS**** With an state of the art high tech spy satellite landing in neutral waters off the cost of an unnamed communist nation in the Pacific Rim it's decided by both sides the USA & and whoever that unnamed communist country is to each have one of their best men to duke it out on the island and the winner gets control of the object. That instead of having a possibly third world war breaking out between the two countries with thousands of deaths on both sides. The man that the US chooses is former green beret and now high paid mercenary "Blood & Guts" Jacob Gallery, Darren McGavin, and in the red or communist corner the flashy and slippery Yuro played by Mister Marco who's known to hit them, his enemies, when they least expected.This game of cat and mouse on the island between Gallary and Yuro goes on for some five days with either side getting the upper hand where it's decided by Gallary's boss Gen. Lewis Meyers, Brodick Crawford, to sent in reinforcements. Which is against the rules of the battle in bringing in hot shot and gong ho Capt. Bryant, Sam Elliott, to give Gallary, who by now is dying of gangrene, assistance. The same goes for Yuro in order for him to tip the scales in his favor his country sends a new man to help him do in Gallery without his knowing about it.***SPOILERS*** The fact that both sides, the USA & unnamed communist country, were playing dirty to win turned both Gallery and Yuro against them in feeling that it wasn't a fair fight. Still Gallery later finished Yuro off but did it on his own by first blasting Capt.Bryant who was planning to off him, and get the credit of knocking off Yuro, all to himself. As for Youro he took care of his help by tripping and hanging him up to dry. It's later before he was killed by Gallery Yuro tried to talk him into joining forces against their two countries for double-crossing both of them. With his mission accomplished and getting his hands on the high tech satellite, that looked like Maconodo cigar, Gallery passed out and later died from both exhaustion as well as gangrene but only after he threw the satellite in the ocean thus preventing his country, the USA, from getting its hands on it!

I saw "The Challenge" when I was 18 years old. I loved it then and I still do. It remains one of my favorite to this day. War was a BIG part of the 1960s and 70s, so this type of movie had a HUGE impact on how I felt about war. I loved Mako in all of his movies! Darren McGavin was also an actor I enjoyed seeing on film and TV. The premise of the movie is very close to being the perfect solution to world war. The characters' were believable and somewhat likable. Both have their own unique personalities but soldiers none the less. I found myself wanting to side with both men not the soldier, and hating the fact that war will never be controlled or abolished.

McGavin was 47 when he made this terrific little film.No TV actor was as good at these roles as McGavin. He was the TV equivalent of Steve McQueen or Lee Marvin, both of whom were also veterans of TV. "The Challenge" could have made a strong theatrical movie for McQueen or Marvin. It could still be remade today.McGavin had already starred in four television series at this point.McGavin had starred the previous season in "The Outsider", as ex-con private investigator David Ross. This was one of the finest private eye series. Roy Huggins, who created and produced the series, later retooled it as "The Rockford Files".After "The Challenge", McGavin made two other exceptional Movies of the Week: "Tribes" and "The Night Stalker". These were better films than most movie stars were making at the time.When the "Gallery" pilot didn't sell, McGavin immediately signed on for another pilot where he played a spy named Killian. The TV movie was called "Berlin Affair". When someone asked him if the film was cloak and dagger, McGavin said it was more "girl on arm". That pilot didn't sell either.I read once that McGavin turned down the lead in "Hogan's Heros" (1965-1971). He could have been dazzling in that role. But in 1965 McGavin did sign on to star in a pilot of "From Here to Eternity". McGavin would have played the Burt Lancaster role of Sergeant Warden. Another tantalizing might have been.

I saw this movie when it originally aired in 1970, and I loved it. I also remember the trailers from the week before that centered around the weapon Gallery used (a double barreled sub-machine gun),really cool ! The idea that two countries would decide to settle their differences and avoid all out war by choosing their toughest soldier to fight it out on a deserted island was great. Sadly, both sides plot to stack the deck and keep an ace up their sleeve, a starkly realistic twist. I've been trying to get a tape of this movie for twenty years, and will gladly pay a reasonable finders fee for a copy.